Johannesburg - After nine months of apprehensive expectation; Covid-19 drama, Omicron disaster, slow starts and impressive finishing; the United Rugby Championship’s (URC) inaugural season enters the business end this week.
And it is here that the Bulls, Sharks and Stormers find themselves when they participate in the quarter-finals of the tournament this weekend. The Bulls and Sharks clash in a mammoth SA derby early Saturday afternoon, while the Stormers host Edinburgh later that evening.
Former Springbok captains Victor Matfield and Jean de Villiers are then best set to give insight into what to expect when the URC goes KO. They might be partisan in their beliefs as former Bulls and Stormers players, respectively, but what cannot be denied is their genuine pride regarding their teams’ progressions this season.
“They started off slowly and there was a lot of expectation surrounding the Bulls,” Matfield opined last week at the launch of SA Rugby’s partnership with Betway. “They started off poorly, but right now they look very good.”
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“They have battled against the Sharks (previously),” the former Bok legend continued, “but I think, especially at Loftus, the Bulls have to be the favourites in the match ... I think on paper the Sharks have a fantastic team (but) I think the Bulls are the better coached team at the moment.”
Matfield did concede that the Bulls have been guilty this season of some slow starts and also not sticking to their strengths, but as mentioned above, the lock believes that director of rugby Jake White and Co have identified their strengths and will be sticking to that gameplan come 1.45pm on Saturday.
Said Matfield: “The games that the Bulls have struggled against the Sharks in, is when they started off too loose.
“The Bulls are very good when they start off with a forwards dominated game - with their line-out maul, their scrum - then from there they can play a more expansive game. I would like to see them build into the game to where they want to throw it around by first putting pressure up-front, almost squeezing the Sharks a little bit.”
His former teammate De Villiers, meanwhile, shared a similar sentiment regarding the Stormers, who won the SA Shield and could have a possible home semi-final and final if they beat the Scottish outfit first and the chips fall their way in the other play-off matches.
So, while chuffed with the Cape-based side’s campaign so far this season, De Villiers did suggest that they should consider a more measured approach at 7pm on Saturday at Cape Town Stadium.
“(The Stormers) have had a bit more of an open-style approach in the matches they have played throughout the round robin stages ... I would say they should stick to what they have done in the past but just be a little bit more conservative, play a little more field position and then hopefully that X-factor will do the magic every now and then.
“Edinburgh is a dangerous side,” he added.
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“With Blair Kinghorn at 10, he brings a different dimension to their game and they can vary it up. They do have a strong South African contingent there as well and they rely a lot on them.
“In terms of the Stormers’ preparations, I don’t think they will be looking at what Edinburgh are doing. I think they just need to get their approach right and if they execute that well, then I do believe that they are the better team.
“When you talk about being more conservative, it is just with (flyhalf) Manie Libbok and (scrumhalf) Herschel Jantjies, they tend to run as an option first; whereas in a game like this they must just look for space at the back as well in their own half ... they must just get the balance right.”
The other quarter-finals this weekend sees an all Irish encounter between Ulster and Munster on Friday night, while tournament favourites Leinster host Glasgow Warriors on Saturday afternoon.
@FreemanZAR